Rating: 
Summary: NOT FANTASY!!!!
Review: I bought this book based on the good reviews. However, I am supremely disappointed for a number of reasons. First, the novel is not a "fantasy". It is more a tale of intrigue, treason, treatchery etc set in medeival times in an unknown land. It is fiction to be sure but there is absolutely nothing "fantastical" about it. If you are looking for medeival fiction this may be ok, but even then it is mediocre at best.
Second, the story is slow, slow, slow - there are parts that glimmer however they are seperated by page after page of fluff. Everytime a new scene begins an intricate description of what each character is wearing is ALWAYS incorporated. Why do we need to be told ad nauseum about every little detail right down to the underwear! I love descriptive writing but after a few times we get the idea of each characters' dress - we don't need to hear it over and over and over - maybe just remind every now and then. The characters are developed reasonably well and some are unique and interesting however the superfluouse descriptions leave me skipping entire paragraphs....
Third, he has stolen several names from Tolkien. MAJOR violation of ethics in my book: for example there is Samwell a fat noble - remind anyone of a fat, tricksy little hobbit? Oh the character is very different, but the name and the physical characteristics are too close to be coincident. Then there is Pyp, awfully close to Pippin Took aka "Pip" and others as well.
Anyway, the book had potential if it had been condensed down to 400 pages. But as it stands at 807 pages it is an agonizing read; short sections of a good story seperated by fluff. Don;t get me wrong, the guy is a good writer, but he is in need of a ruthless editor.
Rating: 
Summary: Medieval Europe Through a Fantastic Lens
Review: Game of Thrones is a gritty and realistic interpretation of medieval history, politics and warfare ... expressed through the lens of fantasy literature. Characters face real problems and define themselves by reacting to them in utterly human, and fallible ways. Game of Thrones, the first book in this series, has some fantasy, but it is almost an afterthought for most of the book.Genre: Epic fantasy Similarities: Dune, Penguin Classics History of England Flavor: Heavy on history, light on fantasy You will probably like this book if: 1. You like epic fantasy.
2. You like historical and political detail
3. You like well defined, nuanced and flawed characters You will probably dislike this book if: 1. You dislike reading about the genealogy of monarchs.
2. You dislike graphic sex and violence
3. You like lots of magic.
4. You like simple plot structure told from only a few points of view
Rating: 
Summary: It's not about the action
Review: I love this series! I can't wait for book 4. Ok, I'll admit that it started out a bit slow and tedious. And I kept wondering when we were going to get to the action. But then I realized this book is not about action, its about the characters. Every character in this series is so vivid. And you get to know the evil characters so well you actually end up rooting for them. This book is definitely not black and white when it comes to good and evil (among the humans at least). There's also plenty of mystery and intrigue, as you know some other-worldly force is brewing up north but you don't know what it is.
Rating:
Summary: Does It Get Any Better Than This?
Review: Let's see, where to begin? This book has everything!!! George R.R. Martin outdoes himself with this first book in the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series.
The prologue begins with a major foreshadowing event, though the characters in it have little to do with the later storyline, so don't get too attached. The event is important, however.
We then focus our attentions to Winterfell, home of Eddard Stark, his wife Lady Catelyn Tully Stark, eldest son Robb, son Bran, son Rickon, daughter Sansa, daughter Arya, and bastard-born son Jon Snow, as well as their many castellans and servants. Again, there is a major foreshadowing event when Jon persuades Lord Eddard to let each child, including himself, keep a direwolf.
From there on out, it's all action, action, action! Lord Eddard goes to the King to give counsel, Lady Catelyn goes to the Eyrie and her sister with a captive, young Bran is thrown off a tower and crippled in both legs, and an unbelievable, unplanned execution takes place.
The book is filled with characters you love, and some, such as Tyrion Lannister, you hate to love. There is plenty of deceit, death, and fights to keep even the stingiest fantasy lover hooked.
I read this book on a family campout, and (unbeknownst to my parents, of course!) snuck into the camp's lighted bathroom and read all night, fininshing the next morning by the campfire. It took me all night with its hearty 700 pages, but it is certainly worth the wait.
Besides, once you're inside Winterfell, you won't want out anyway!
Rating:
Summary: .......a waste of talent.....
Review: Let me get started by saying that Martin writes incredibly well,
he just has absolutly no taste at all. the incest sex scenes were absolutly disgusting and are prevalent in the second book as well. And don't get attached to the characters because he kills'em off more than the villains die, if they die at all...
The deaths are also gratuitous most of the time and grisly to say the least.there just is no point to them at all other than to tick off the reader.Oh, and also I'm 15 not 12.
Rating:
Summary: Red wine from Arbor
Review: Have a taste of this and many of the other fantasy series would start to taste like vinegar. The one thing that I really like about this book and subsequently, its series is that George did a good job getting his readers into the characters; very unlike many other fantasy series. You either come to love some of George's characters so much or hate some of them at the same time. The pace at which the story plods along is perfect and keeps you wanting for more. Excellent!
Rating:
Summary: Hard fantasy at its best
Review: This book is like a roller coaster: complex, slow to start, thrilling, and (hopefully) structurally sound. Brilliantly realized characters wend their way through an intricate yet comprehensible plot. Political strife, murder, fear, love, hate, betrayal, intrigue, revenge, magic and the supernatural, this book has everything you could want except a healthy dose of good cheer. If you want your books to make you laugh, read Discworld instead. Resembling real-world history much more than it does any heroic, swashbuckling fantasy tale, Martin's story is unrelentingly dark, brutally honest, honestly brutal, and very, very hard to put down. My favorite things about this book are the characters and the world at large. I'm told the setting is like historical England, and certainly there is enough geography and politics to go around, but what sticks out in my mind is the magic and monsters. Supernatural means something not normal, but in many fantasy books, magic is everywhere, and monsters hide around every corner, until they become tedious and ordinary. Martin treats his monsters like the rare, fearsome, otherworldly beings they are supposed to be, and they are much more interesting and frightening for it. Likewise, magic is rare, deadly serious, and at least as dangerous as it is powerful. Any schmoe can write Here There Be Dragons on a map, but George Martin makes you feel that they might really be there. I also love believable, consistent characters. A good plot is driven by characters: Whatever the writer feels should happen next, it should be the natural inclination of one or more of his characters to make that thing happen, or the story won't make sense. A Game of Thrones is packed with real human beings, each with his own agenda, his own code of behavior, and so on. A bevy of conflicts are presented and none are black and white: The only distinction between good and bad is that the good guys hesitate a little longer before breaking trust. The lines between right and wrong are entirely rubbed out by the time you are finished with this one. The bottom line: for hard fantasy that holds your attention and delivers on its promises, you can't do better than this book. Put down The Wheel of Time and The Sword of Truth and give this series a try.
Rating:
Summary: great story
Review: Love this series. Can't wait for the fourth to come out in april 2004. Reminds me of the books of the Fey series of Kathyrn Rusch
Rating:
Summary: You'll Be Left Hanging & Wanting More!
Review: Be prepared for over 800 pages of involved reading and an ending that will leave you hanging big time. But that's the beauty of this masterpiece...you devote yourself fully to all those pages and you still want more! I'm heading right to the library tomorrow for book 2 of the series. I can not wait to pick it up and begin reading again. So many storylines are woven together perfectly...I can not say anything superlative about this book that has not been said already. Personally, I have more unanswered questions and unresolved subplots floating around in my head than I know what to do with. I have to get the next book ASAP. Excellent!!
Rating:
Summary: Good Characters
Review: The characters are well drawn (the men are more three-dimensional than the women). I feel as though I'd recognize them if we met, and I'd like to talk to them. The plot is shaped by the characters' interactions, does not seem to be going anywhere, but the interactions are interesting.
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